This invention relates generally to the art of displaying decorative, or fanciful, goods and more particularly relates to a device which can be used for displaying two decorative items in a coordinated manner while still allowing the goods to be displayed individually, if desired.
Many different brackets and arrangements exist in the prior art for displaying items. For example, there are brackets which can be attached to walls which mate with counterpart brackets attached to items to be displayed (or used). For example, U.S. Pat. No. 3,848,843 to Levy and U.S. Pat. No. 2,916,839 to Wheaton disclose brackets for hanging items from walls. Similarly, there are many patents, such as U.S. Pat. No. 3,811,565 to Tancredi, which disclose supports and other devices for supporting items, such as dolls, from horizontal surfaces. However, there does not appear to be appropriate apparatus for selectively simultaneously displaying two items, in combination with one another. Thus, it is an object of this invention to provide an effective apparatus and method for selectively simultaneously supporting two items in coordination with one another.
A difficulty that is encountered in trying to design "ready-made" brackets and supports for supporting fanciful goods is that their users often like to apply their own creativity thereto. For example, under some circumstances, some people prefer to place fanciful, decorative items on horizontal surfaces such as tables, counters, and the like, while under other circumstances, they prefer to hang such items from walls. Therefore, it is an object of this invention to provide an apparatus and method which can be used to either support items on horizontal surfaces or hang them on walls, and which is effective when used in either manner.
Similarly, many people who display decorative items often wish to exchange the displayed items and/or to display the items in various ways. Therefore, it is an object of this invention to provide an apparatus and a method for displaying two decorative items, as mentioned above, but which can also be used with various types of decorative items, which can be used to display only one decorative item when desired, and/or which allows the items to be displayed individually where desired.
It is also an object of this invention to provide an apparatus and method for displaying two decorative items which employs a relatively inexpensive bracket and which is relatively easy for consumers to use.